How do you take care of your microphones?

[Jidis]

Originally Posted by Jidis

I have a shock proof Anvil road case and a whole set of drum cases that I have nightmares about. Dried out or crumbly foam is one thing.. these transform into this black "gunk" that sticks to everything like hot tar.

That crap has actually eaten into the finish on my Rosewood Gretsch kit.

I just took one apart to see how hard it is to clean off, and there's this big pimply area where the shell was touching it. Looks about like what you'd get if you soaked a paper towel in acetone, sat it on the lacquer for a while, then tried to peel it off. I may be looking at having to get them recoated or something. Serves me right for not going down there to check on them once in a while.

not happy Anvil.... not happy

[larrykane]

Originally Posted by Jidis

That crap has actually eaten into the finish on my Rosewood Gretsch kit.

I just took one apart to see how hard it is to clean off, and there's this big pimply area where the shell was touching it. Looks about like what you'd get if you soaked a paper towel in acetone, sat it on the lacquer for a while, then tried to peel it off. I may be looking at having to get them recoated or something. Serves me right for not going down there to check on them once in a while.

not happy Anvil.... not happy

Presuming the finish is catalyzed nitrocellulose laquer, the solvents are among the "hottest" (paint guy talk). Alchohol (denatured, not rubbing) is a much cooler solvent but should be enough to soften the foam sludge without any harm at all to the laquer. I would take an alchohol filled cloth, somewhere between moistened and soaked, and hold it on the affected area for several minutes to dissolve the foam stuff. You should be able to reduce the damage by at least removing all foreign materials from the finish. OF COURSE try the alchohol somewhere non visible first such as under the pickguard.

[Jidis]

Hey Larry,

Thanks! Actually, that was the situation after getting the foam residue off the shell (these are drums BTW ). All this time I had figured it was just the usual fuzzy black stuff left from the foam/adhesive on the drums, and that it would be smooth after it came off. I went with mineral spirits as a solvent, as I figured it wouldn't eat the topcoat on the shells, and it did an OK job of getting the gunk off after some rubbing, but the foam mix had already eaten its way in a long time ago.

I'm hoping there's a way to smooth it over without having to do a full strip or refinish.

Take Care,

George

[larrykane]

Originally Posted by Jidis

Hey Larry,

Thanks! Actually, that was the situation after getting the foam residue off the shell (these are drums BTW ). All this time I had figured it was just the usual fuzzy black stuff left from the foam/adhesive on the drums, and that it would be smooth after it came off. I went with mineral spirits as a solvent, as I figured it wouldn't eat the topcoat on the shells, and it did an OK job of getting the gunk off after some rubbing, but the foam mix had already eaten its way in a long time ago.

I'm hoping there's a way to smooth it over without having to do a full strip or refinish.

Take Care,

George

OK then. If the drums etc are worth it, I'd purchase "Understanding Wood Finishes" by Bob Flexner, and also google about polishing finishes with pumice and rottenstone. If you are dilligent you can learn to make it look great again after learning a few upscale furniture makers tips. I would check the manufacturer as to what finish they used though because there is a growing trend toward environmentally friendly finishes which each have certain quirks. If you need more, pm me -(used to be a cabinet and furniture maker.
LK

[Jidis]

Thanks again Larry.

Yeah, I have a couple books, but not that one. I've seen the pumice technique in one of them. It would be nice if I could rub it back to smooth with something and buff it out, but I'm afraid of getting into the stain. It's a bright "candy apple red" looking color over maple that I wouldn't want to try to match. They're most likely from around 1980.